Sickness
by Katkid
Summary: sequel to Dark Child Sheranamon has a new method to eliminate the Digidestined....
1. Default Chapter Title

Disclaimer: In no way do I own Digimon. Do not sue me. I only write fan fiction. If I make up names that are the same as on the show, I'm sorry. I haven't seen every episode, but I've seen most. Thank you very much.  
  
  
Sickness-Part I: Revenge  
  
  
Amid the dark fog of the realm between dreams, a bright, spherical light shone blindingly. The light faded slowly to reveal a crystal ball. A clawed hand held the glowing ball tightly as fiery eyes stared into it.  
  
The fog inside the crystal ball twisted and shifted until it showed the image of eight children, seven of which were sleeping while one kept watch. The watcher looked very tired; his eyes were drooping heavy with fatigue, but he refused to give in to his exhaustion. He wore goggles in his hair. Perhaps that was a factor in how his hair managed to stay so high and puffy.  
  
A girl with light brown hair in a dark pink dress turned in her sleep, sighed and fell into a deeper sleep.  
  
This scene seemed to interest Sheranamon with a vengeance. She watched the images in the crystal ball with a piercing stare. After a few minutes, Sheranamon began to become slightly impatient.   
  
The peaceful scene was abruptly brought to an end by the emerging of a creature that looked as though it were made of the wind. It was invisible to all human eyes, but the tall-haired boy seemed to sense something was wrong. A small puff of mist escaped the creature and enveloped the child. Suddenly unable to stay awake, the begoggled boy drifted off to sleep.  
  
Sheranamon grinned evilly. This was what she had been waiting for. The nearly invisible creature floated over to the tall-haired boy and laid a transparent hand on his forehead. His face suddenly contorted in pain, then his body shuddered and he groaned gently in his sleep.  
  
Just as quickly as it had appeared, the creature disappeared.  
  
It is done, Sheranamon thought, smiling with malice. The leader shall fall due to my unfathomable genius. You have done well, Viromon...  
  
  
~*~  
  
"Tai, wake up. Come on, we've gotta get going," Izzy muttered, shaking the older boy by the shoulder.  
  
This is strange, Izzy thought. It isn't like Tai to sleep in longer than Mimi.  
  
Tai was unresponsive.  
  
Izzy was beginning to feel annoyed. He turned back to Tai to give him another shake, but that was when he noticed his face.  
  
"You guys had better get over here quick!" Izzy shouted over his shoulder.  
  
The six other Digidestined proceeded to the spot where Izzy and Tai were with varying degrees of alertness.   
  
Mimi was still very tired. "What?" she grouchily asked. She didn't think it was fair that she had been woken up-especially if Tai wasn't even awake yet.  
  
Kari was a bit more awake. "What is it, Izzy?" she asked, her tone a bit nicer than Mimi's had been.  
  
Izzy took a deep breath and replied: "There is something very wrong with Tai."  
  
Matt laughed and questioned: "What, besides the fact that he has no brain?"  
  
"This isn't the time for jokes, Matt," Izzy wryly answered. "This is serious." Izzy motioned to Tai's face. It was very pale and clammy.   
  
Matt stopped laughing and looked at Tai's face. "What happened to him?" he quarried.  
  
"Besides the obvious? I honestly don't know," Izzy admitted.  
  
Before another word was said, Tai's eyes opened and he started coughing violently.  
  
"Tai, are you OK?" Kari asked. She was becoming more and more concerned for her older brother every second that passed.  
  
He nodded and weakly replied: "no big deal, just a cold."  
  
"I think we should stay here," Joe announced.  
  
"No, don't worry about me. We still have to get our Digimon back," Tai said.  
  
"You're sick, Tai. You've got to rest," Sora argued.  
  
Tai didn't want to tell anyone, but he was feeling much worse than he was letting them know. His throat was so swollen in hurt to swallow and it was hard to speak. He also had a terrible headache and he felt a little woozy.  
  
"No, really, I'm fine," Tai protested, hiding a series of coughs that threatened to tear through him.  
  
"Well, I could do with some rest myself," Mimi replied, yawning loudly.  
  
"There, it's settled. We'll rest here for today," Matt stated.  
  
Tai was about to disagree, but he felt suddenly tired. Within seconds, he was asleep.  
  
"What's wrong with Tai?" TK asked Matt.  
  
"He's just sick," Matt explained.  
  
  
~*~  
  
Sheranamon watched the scene play out in her crystal ball gleefully. It had gone much better than she could have possibly hoped.  
  
Of course she had imagined that Courage wouldn't tell the others just how awful he was truly feeling, but she hadn't begun to hope that he wouldn't tell them anything at all.  
  
It was nearly too good to be true. At the rate they were going, it would be too late before Courage said a word about his condition.   
  
Take away the leader and the rest of the group will easily be eliminated, Sheranamon thought.  
  
She settled back down to watch...  
  
  
~*~  
  
Sora glanced over at Tai nervously. He had been asleep nearly the whole day and he certainly didn't look any better.  
  
I wonder if he's worse off than he's telling us, Sora pondered. If anything, he looks worse. He barely even wanted any water.  
  
"Hey, Sora, what are you thinking about?" Mimi asked.  
  
Sora quickly snapped back to reality and replied: "Oh, nothing much. Just worried, that's all."  
  
"What, about Tai?" Mimi questioned.  
  
Sora nodded. "Do you really think it's just a cold?"   
  
"I don't think he'd lie to us," Mimi reasoned. "If he says he has a cold, then he has a cold."  
  
Sora didn't reply.  
  
"Sora? Yoo-hoo, anybody home?" Mimi asked, waving her hand in front of Sora's face.  
  
"Huh? Oh, yeah, Mimi," Sora responded, barely bothering to look up.  
  
Mimi let out an exasperated sigh and walked away.  
  
  
~*~  
  
TK sat listening to Matt play his harmonica. He shut his eyes and listened to the soulful chords.  
  
Matt plays his harmonica so well, TK sleepily thought. It was getting late.  
  
He would have dropped off to sleep, but something that had been bothering him all day kept bubbling into his mind.  
  
Of course he knew that Tai was sick-everybody did-but TK sensed something was very wrong.   
  
Everyone had been very quiet the whole day unwilling to say much to him. They were all acting tense and worried, like Tai had more than a cold.  
  
TK opened his eyes and glanced at his older brother playing the harmonica. He had told him that Tai was just sick... TK believed his big brother more than anyone else.   
  
It must not be too serious... TK yawned and dropped off to sleep listening to the haunting melody of the harmonica.  
  
  
~*~  
  
Izzy typed furiously on his laptop. He wanted to get a connection to Gennai, but something had been blocking him ever since they had defeated the Dark Child.   
  
He thought for a moment, then realized that the last time they had spoken to Gennai was just before their Digimon were stolen.  
  
Izzy quickly went back to his work and groaned in frustration as his connection was once again refused.  
  
  
~*~  
  
Joe removed his glasses and rubbed his eyes then replaced the glasses. This whole thing was strange.  
  
What really had him puzzled was how Tai came down with his illness so quickly. It just happened overnight.   
  
I wonder if it's contagious, Joe reflected. Whatever it is, I'm probably allergic to it.  
  
"Oh no! He's getting worse!" Joe heard Sora cry in dismay.  
  
Joe jogged over to Sora, who had been watching Tai.  
  
At first glance, Joe didn't detect anything different. Breathing was still normal. His face was even the same pale color.   
  
Joe was about to ask Sora what she was talking about when he noticed that Tai was awake. Upon closer inspection, Joe also noticed that Tai's eyes were glazed over...  



	2. Default Chapter Title

Disclaimer: I could never hope to own Digimon. This is just my fan fiction; so don't sue me! Enjoy part two in my series! Sorry this part is a little shorter than usual.  
  
  
  
Sickness-Part II: Unresolved Conflict  
  
  
"How long has he been like that?" Joe anxiously questioned.  
  
"I don't know," Sora moaned back, holding back her panic. "He just woke up and his eyes were like that."  
  
Izzy wandered over to Sora and Joe, carrying his laptop computer with a cross look on his face. "What's the matter? I'm trying to contact Gennai, he might know how to help us," Izzy protested.  
  
He took a deep breath to go on, then quickly let it out when he noticed Tai's eyes.  
  
Joe felt Tai's forehead cautiously. "His fever's gotten a lot higher," Joe announced.  
  
Kari raced over to the growing group out of breath. "I'm sorry," she panted. "I was walking in the woods."  
  
"Why?" Sora asked, still wary of anyone going off on their own after the Dark Child incident.  
  
"I was just...thinking," Kari replied. "What's going on?"  
  
Everyone looked away, not wanting to be the one to tell Kari that her brother was worse. Fortunately for them, they were liberated from this responsibility when Tai started coughing.  
  
Sora quickly looked behind her and saw that his eyes were back to normal. She breathed a silent sigh of relief and replied: "nothing we can't handle. His fever's just a little higher, that's all." She smiled as convincingly as she could.  
  
"Oh," Kari muttered. She got the distinct feeling that Sora was hiding something from her. People didn't smile quite that wide for no particular reason. She shrugged it off and walked away.  
  
"Tai, what is going on?" Sora whispered so as not to have Kari worry.  
  
"Nothing," Tai replied, not wanting his friends to be worried for no reason.  
  
"People don't look like that for 'nothing,'" Joe argued.  
  
"No, really, it's no big deal," Tai stated, ignoring his burning throat.  
  
Another series of coughs overtook him and he was briefly unable to speak.  
  
Once the coughing stopped, Izzy said: "Tai, you have to tell us if you feel worse than you're saying. The consequences of keeping quiet won't be pretty to say the least."  
  
Tai didn't reply for a while. Joe was about to add more to Izzy's comment, but Tai finally replied: "no, I'm OK."  
  
Izzy started to protest, but instead shook his head and walked away to resume his attempts of contacting Gennai.  
  
Joe gave Tai a long look, then finally left.  
  
Sora backed away from Tai and sat back down at her original post.  
  
  
~*~  
  
Agumon felt as though he was swimming in darkness. The last thing he remembered was seeing all his other friends at that huge castle and trying to Digivolve.   
  
He heard somebody cackling and strained to hear who it could be. Fighting against the darkness, he forced open his eyes. It nearly didn't make any difference if his eyes were open or closed.  
  
He was still in the cage, but the cage didn't seem to be on the ground or suspended by any ropes. They were simply floating in a dark fog.   
  
Something bright flashed through the fog and he caught of glimpse of Sheranamon looking into a glowing sphere.  
  
"Sheranamon!" Agumon shouted. Though it was deathly silent in this dark place, it seemed as though the only way to speak was to shout.  
  
Sheranamon suddenly stopped laughing and looked directly at Agumon.  
  
Agumon immediately wished he'd said nothing. Sheranamon's glare was enough to give his goose bumps, but he didn't dare look away.  
  
"So my little captive is awake," she muttered. "What to do, what to do..."  
  
"Sheranamon, don't hurt them!" Agumon pleaded.  
  
Sheranamon laughed and replied: "I haven't done a thing."  
  
This remark did little to comfort Agumon. He certainly didn't like the way Sheranamon had said 'I.'   
  
"See for yourself," Sheranamon added, casually tossing the crystal ball close enough to Agumon for him to see.  
  
Agumon glared at Sheranamon, then looked into the crystal ball. He saw TK sleeping peacefully next to Matt, who had also dropped off to sleep. Matt still held his harmonica in one of his hands.  
  
The images shifted and he saw Mimi sleeping heavily.   
  
Again, the images shifted and he saw Izzy typing on his laptop.  
  
Agumon was beginning to wonder what Sheranamon could find so funny. He went from seeing Kari sleeping to Joe nervously rearranging the contents of his bag to Sora looking worried.  
  
"But where's-" Agumon started, but his question was answered before he could finish.   
  
The image shifted to Tai. Agumon gasped at Tai's appearance. His face was white as paper and clammy. His usually tall hair limply framed his face making him look much different than usual.  
  
Sheranamon snatched the crystal ball back and peered into it contentedly.  
  
"What did you do with Tai?" Agumon demanded.   
  
"I did nothing. Viromon on the other hand..."  
  
Agumon's eyes widened in shock. He'd heard rumors that Viromon had been wiped out, but apparently they were only that: rumors.   
  
"I swear if Tai isn't OK I'll-" Agumon began.  
  
"You'll what?" Sheranamon mocked. "I think you're in no position to fight." She glided over to Agumon and placed her clawed hand on Agumon's head.  
  
Agumon shuddered and fell asleep...  
  
  
~*~  
  
Sora woke early the next morning and immediately noticed that Tai was coughing very violently.   
  
"Tai, are you all right?" she questioned.  
  
Tai was coughing so hard he couldn't answer. Sora gasped when she realized he was coughing up blood.  
  
Finally, he stopped coughing and murmured: "Sora, I'm sorry" before lapsing into unconsciousness.  
  
"Tai? Tai, wake up! Please!" Sora shouted. "OK, he's just unconscious," Sora muttered to herself. "Then why am I so afraid for him?"  
  
She took a calming breath and decided to check his pulse just to calm her jumpy nerves. To her shock, there was no pulse...  
  
"Sora? Sora, wake up," Sora heard Joe's voice coaxing her out of sleep.  
  
Suddenly, Sora sat straight up and screamed: "TAI!" She looked around and saw that it was still night. "It was a dream," she whispered.  
  
"Looked like you were having a nightmare," Joe replied.  
  
"I dreamed that Tai died," Sora gasped.  
  
"Good thing it was only a dream," Joe replied.  
  
Sora nodded and brought a shaky hand to wipe away the sweat that had gathered on her forehead. She stole a quick glance at Tai and breathed a sigh of relief. He was sleeping peacefully.  
  
"Go back to sleep, Sora, don't exhaust yourself," Joe advised. "I'll watch him if you want."  
  
Sora silently nodded and dropped off to sleep...  
  
  
  
  
  



	3. Default Chapter Title

Disclaimer: No, I don't own Digimon. Sorry if you wanted to sue me; you can't!  
  
  
Sickness-Part III: Déjà vu?   
  
  
Mimi yawned and stretched after waking for almost the first time on her own in the Digiworld. It was a nice feeling, but it was quickly spoiled when she remembered Tai was sick.  
  
I hope he'll be OK, Mimi pondered. It can't be too bad if he said it was just a cold... But then why are we still here? I don't think we would stay in one spot for so long if some one just had a cold. I wonder if he was lying... No, we're his friends. He wouldn't lie on something that important.  
  
Mimi looked around and realized she was nearly the last one up, which was fine with her. She noticed with surprise that Sora was still asleep.  
  
Poor Sora, she must have worn herself out, Mimi thought. I wonder where everyone else is?  
  
Mimi yawned again and decided they wouldn't go too far before lying back down to take full advantage of the break...  
  
  
~*~  
  
"Ooooooohhh, she's pretty much all alone, Sheranamon," Viromon wheezed in a voice that sounded like wind whirring in a chimney. "I could make her sick, too!"  
  
"No, no, no. Once the leader is dead, I shall deal with them myself," Sheranamon explained.  
  
"Awwwww, but couldn't I just give her a teensy little cold or something?" Viromon whined.  
  
"I do not want you appearing to those children until Courage is in his last hour. Do you understand?" Sheranamon was beginning to regret recruiting Viromon. His powers were useful, true, but he would always want to do far more than necessary.   
  
"Yes, Sheranamon," Viromon obediently complied with a crestfallen sigh.  
  
  
~*~  
  
Sora finally woke when the sun was high in the sky. She realized with embarrassment the she was the last one up. She'd even out slept Mimi, who was at the moment watching Tai.   
  
"Hey, where's everyone else?" Sora quarried.  
  
Mimi looked at Sora and cheerfully stated: "Mornin' sleepyhead!"   
  
Sora rolled her eyes at the lighthearted reminder of her over sleeping and replied: "Well, where are they?"  
  
"What? Not even a good morning? Well, I don't know where they are. They were all gone when I woke up," Mimi sniffed, feeling she had been snubbed.  
  
I don't see why they couldn't have told me-- or at least Mimi-- where they were going, Sora thought. I wonder where they went?  
  
As if in answer to her unspoken question, Matt, TK, Joe, Kari and Izzy emerged from the woods.  
  
"What were you guys doing?" Sora asked.  
  
"Nothing much. Just trying to get some lunch," Matt explained.  
  
"Well, you didn't have to go without telling someone," Sora argued.  
  
"We didn't want to wake you up. Joe told us about last night," Kari stated.  
  
Sora felt her face get hot at this last statement. She had let her dream get the better of her and Joe had told them all.  
  
"It wasn't a big deal, really," Sora muttered under her breath.   
  
She was about to say her last remark louder for all to hear, but they were already going about their business.  
  
Sora got up and walked over to Mimi.  
  
"Mimi, I'll take over for a while," she muttered.  
  
"You've been really stressed out ever since Tai got sick. You should take a rest," Mimi suggested.  
  
"I don't need a rest! Just let me watch Tai!" Sora snapped.  
  
"Well, if you're sure," Mimi murmured. She left and Sora plunked down on the rock she had sat on every day to watch Tai...  
  
  
~*~  
  
Mimi went straight to Joe and stated: "I'm worried about Sora."  
  
"Why?" Joe wondered.  
  
"She's really stressed out about this all. She won't let anyone else watch over Tai and she won't give herself a break," Mimi replied, her voice gaining intensity with her worried tone. "She's got to give it a rest."  
  
"Should I try and give her a break?" Joe suggested.  
  
Mimi thought for a moment, then nodded and said: "good luck. She made me leave."  
  
Joe nodded and walked over to Sora.  
  
"Hi, Sora," Joe muttered, halfway wishing he wasn't doing this.   
  
"Hi, Joe," Sora replied, her voice tinted with a note of melancholy.  
  
"Hey, Sora, you should take a break. You'll just make yourself sick if you don't loosen up a little," Joe burst out.  
  
"I don't want to stop watching over him. What if he needs help and no one is here?" Sora reasoned.  
  
"Sora, he'll be fine. He's not a little kid. This is TAI we're talking about," Joe argued. "I can watch him if you're so worried about it."  
  
Sora considered for a while and finally replied: "Well, OK. But I'm coming back" before leaving her constant post.  
  
  
~*~  
  
Matt sat a bit away from the rest of the group thinking about everything that was going on.  
  
I wonder if Tai's sick because of something from an enemy? Or maybe it's just a coincidence. But then why would he get sick so fast? And just after that Dark Child thing, too...   
  
Matt shivered at the recollection of the Dark Child. He was lucky to be alive after all that had happened and he knew it.   
  
He sighed and pushed it all to the back of his mind for the moment.  
  
  
~*~  
  
Tai felt like everything was happening through a haze. He could hear Sora and Joe talking, but it was slow and muted, as though someone had made the whole world suddenly switch into slow motion.  
  
He forced his eyes open and saw that Joe was sitting a short distance away from him, but strangely, he looked blurry.  
  
Tai vaguely noticed Joe was saying something, but it was so hard to hear and he was so tired...  
  
He tried to say something to tell Joe that he was OK, but the words wouldn't come. A fit of coughing overtook him and he noticed that he was coughing up something. Even with his unfocused vision, he could tell that it was blood.  
  
He could hear Joe shouting something, but the words were garbled. He was so very tired. He felt as though he were slipping into darkness just before he went unconscious...  
  
  
~*~  
  
The six other Digidestined quickly raced to Joe when they heard him cry out.  
  
"What is it? What's wrong?" Sora anxiously inquired.  
  
"It's Tai. He coughed up blood and then went unconscious," Joe shakily explained.  
  
Mimi took one look at the blood and screamed. Kari on the other hand, began sobbing for her older brother.  
  
Sora's face went white as a sheet and she muttered: "no, no... Please no."  
  
"What, Sora?" Izzy asked, still stunned at what was happening.  
  
"It can't happen like this. It can't!" Sora screamed, her voice reaching a note of hysteria. "It can't!"  
  
"What?" Matt questioned, thoroughly confused by Sora's strange behavior.   
  
"It can't be like my dream," Sora whispered.   
  
"He's still alive. He's just unconscious," Joe replied, trying to calm Sora down.  
  
"That's just how it was in my dream!" Sora shrieked, letting her bottled emotions pour out.  
  
"No, Sora, he isn't dead," Joe firmly stated.  
  
Sora took a deep, shaky breath and responded: "Are you sure?"  
  
"Yes. He's not dead. We won't let him die," Joe added.  
  
Now that the general chaos had somewhat calmed, Sora removed a cloth from Joe's bag and got it wet from her canteen then gently laid it on Tai's hot forehead.  
  
"Matt, is Tai going to be all right?" TK worriedly asked.  
  
"I don't know, TK," Matt honestly replied. "I don't know what's going on."  



	4. Default Chapter Title

Disclaimer: I don't own Digimon, so don't sue me.  
  
  
Sickness-Part IV: Disregarding  
  
  
TK sat alone thinking about everything that had happened.  
  
He knew everything was very, very wrong. It was painfully clear that Tai's illness was far than a cold. Sora had been working herself to the bone to bring Tai's fever down for hours.  
  
"Sora, how's he doing?" TK asked.  
  
Sora sighed heavily, rubbed her eyes and replied in an exhausted voice: "TK, I really don't know anymore."  
  
That was another thing that was terribly amiss. Sora was overdriving herself. No matter what anybody said or did, she would assume full responsibility for everything that was happening.  
  
TK heard a muffled sob and noticed that Kari was crying again. At every mention of her brother's condition, Kari would cry. Her usually warm brown eyes were bloodshot and she looked nearly as harrowed as Sora.  
  
TK didn't know what he should do. Should he try to help Sora? Or maybe he should comfort Kari... TK remembered that Sora would let only Joe help her, and even then it was with reluctance. Unable to stand doing nothing a moment later, TK walked over to Kari, who was still crying.  
  
"Kari, it'll be all right," TK reassured.  
  
"How do you know? How can you know?" Kari sniffled, wiping away her tears.  
  
"Tai won't give up," TK simply replied.  
  
"I know that, I don't know if that will help him, though," Kari murmured.  
  
"It will," TK stated.  
  
"I just wish I knew. He's my brother, TK. You don't know how awful this is, at least not if Matt's never been this sick," Kari sadly whispered. "What will I do without him?"  
  
"Don't talk like that, Kari," TK pleaded. "Don't lose hope."  
  
Kari stopped crying and wiped her teary eyes.  
  
"Do you really think he'll be OK?" she finally questioned.  
  
TK confidently nodded.  
  
"Thank you, TK," Kari muttered so quietly he nearly didn't hear.  
  
You're welcome, TK thought.  
  
  
~*~  
  
It is nearly time for me to make my appearance, Viromon pondered. Courage will soon be dead.  
  
Viromon considered a moment, then chuckled and thought: I believe I shall make Sheranamon's job easier. Who cares what Sheranamon says; I want to have a little fun before she deals with them... Yes, I shall...  
  
~*~  
  
Izzy was trying his hardest to gain a connection to Gennai, but it was difficult to concentrate.  
  
He halfheartedly clicked away on the keyboard and hit the enter key. Just as it had been since their Digimon were stolen, the connection was refused.  
  
He sighed and flipped the top of his pineapple laptop down before surveying the camp. When he noticed TK comforting Kari, he smiled slightly. The smile quickly dropped off his face upon seeing Sora working desperately for Tai. He shook his head sadly when Sora once again refused help.  
  
  
~*~  
  
Mimi grimly shook her head after her offers for help were as usual turned down.  
  
"I wonder what it is that Tai had," Mimi muttered.  
  
"That is a very good question," Joe replied.  
  
"What do you think it is?" Mimi quarried.  
  
"I would guess it was pneumonia, but I've never heard of pneumonia coming on so suddenly," Joe puzzled.  
  
Joe continued puzzling it out quietly while Mimi slowly dropped off to sleep.  
  
  
~*~  
  
"Sora, come on! You have to take a rest," Matt argued.  
  
Sora gave a shuddering sigh and dully answered: "Why won't you all just leave me alone? Mimi just asked me and the answer is the same for both of you. No."  
  
"Stop it, Sora. You can't work yourself like this," Matt stated.  
  
"Just go," Sora quietly commanded.  
  
"Listen to me, Sora. You can't help Tai if you make yourself sick, too!" Matt shouted.  
  
"Just go, Matt!" Sora screamed.  
  
Matt hadn't expected Sora to be so forceful. He had never seen her like this and it worried him.  
  
"Just go," she repeated.  
  
Matt was about to continue the argument, but he heard Izzy whisper: "Matt, don't."  
  
Reluctantly, he left Sora...  
  
  
~*~  
  
Sora removed the already hot cloth from Tai's forehead, wet it with cool water and replaced it gently.  
  
She felt sleep relentlessly pulling at her, but she refused to give in and ignored it.  
  
Come on, Tai. You have to be all right, she thought.  
  
Tai's eyes opened ever so slightly.  
  
"Tai, you're OK!" she happily cried.  
  
"Sora?" Tai rasped. He could barely see six inches in front of him. "It's Sora, isn't it?"  
  
"Yes, Tai, it's me," Sora answered.  
  
"Sora, take care of Kari. And-and tell everyone I'll always be here," Tai weakly ordered.  
  
"No, I won't have to," Sora desperately said.  
  
"I-I'm sorry," Tai whispered. He slipped into unconsciousness again.  
  
"Tai? Tai, no!" Sora shrieked. "Don't do this! Don't!"  
  
She lifted his wrist and found a pulse. It was weak, but it was a pulse.  
  
Relief flooded into her, but it was quickly cut short when a scream from Mimi cut through the camp.  
  
"Mimi, what is it?" Sora questioned.  
  
"L-look over th-there," Mimi trembled so weakly it was a wonder Sora even heard her.  
  
Sora followed the direction of Mimi's finger and saw a Digimon that looked like it was made from the wind. It was transparent and she could see the trees that were behind the Digimon through it.  
  
"What do you want?" Sora demanded, her worn nerves clear in her shaky voice.  
  
The Digimon replied in a wheezing, reedy voice: "I am Viromon..."  



	5. Default Chapter Title

Disclaimer: No, I don't own them. If I did, my work wouldn't be fan fiction; it would be on the TV! (I wish)  
  
  
Sickness-Part V: The End-or is it???  
  
  
"What do you want?" Sora repeated.  
  
Viromon turned to her and said: "Nothing that concerns you."  
  
"Are you going to tell us already?" Matt questioned. He felt resentment toward this new Digimon, this Viromon.   
  
"You shall see," Viromon replied.   
  
Before another request for his reasons could be uttered, Viromon began chanting something in a very strange language.   
  
The words seemed to melt together until it sounded like a single, solid word chanted over and over again as steadily as the wind blowing through the trees.  
  
Izzy listened to the chant intently, trying to figure out what Viromon was saying. Strangely, the words almost felt as though they were surrounding him, engulfing him.   
  
He was brought crashing back to reality when a shriek from Sora shattered his concentration. Izzy wondered what could be happening, then he noticed Tai.   
  
Tai was glowing faintly and becoming transparent.   
  
"What's happening to him?!?" Sora screamed.  
  
"I believe" Izzy explained "he's being deleted."   
  
"But-but if he's being deleted, why is it taking so long?" Mimi questioned.   
  
"Sometimes when you delete a very complex file on a computer it takes longer than a normal file," Izzy grimly answered.  
  
That was when it all clicked into place for Izzy. Viromon had made Tai sick and Viromon was back to finish the job. He would have said "prodigious" but there was no time even for that. All he knew was that Viromon couldn't be allowed to finish the chant.  
  
Running at top speed, Izzy raced to Viromon hoping against hope that he wouldn't be too late.   
  
"What are you doing, Izzy?" Joe shouted, but to no reply.  
  
Izzy lunged for Viromon-only to end up going THROUGH Viromon. The chant abruptly stopped, Tai stopped disappearing and Viromon turned to Izzy.  
  
"So you think you can outsmart me?" Viromon hissed in the most poisonous of poison tones. "I was going to do this after Courage was killed, but you have persuaded me otherwise. You, Knowledge, will be my second victim."   
  
Viromon flew at Izzy at a surprisingly fast pace. Izzy barely made it out of the way before Viromon swooped for the spot he had been standing in.   
  
"Why don't you just stay still and make it easy on yourself?" Viromon stated as he took another dive at Izzy. Again, he missed, but only by millimeters.   
  
Mimi watched the scene fearfully and with a sense of admiration. She hadn't thought Izzy would ever do something that crazy. I could never do something like that...  
  
She was quickly jarred out of her ponderings when she noticed Izzy was cornered. She watched in horror as he realized he was trapped, that he was boxed into a corner like the mouse in a cruel game of cat and mouse. She watched Viromon smugly extend his hand. Slowly. Arrogantly.   
  
Before she could stop herself, she shouted: "No, don't hurt him!"  
  
Again, Viromon was surprised enough to stop his attack. For a moment, he searched for his new opposer.   
  
"So you are foolish as well, I see," Viromon muttered. "Then I shall finish you along with him."  
  
He turned back to Izzy and raised his hand, once again slowly and smugly. Finally, his fingers ever so lightly brushed Izzy's forehead.  
  
Izzy shuddered, then fainted.  
  
"What did you do to him?!?" Kari cried.   
  
"Nothing worse than I will do to you," Viromon laughed.  
  
The already dark night sky suddenly went pitch black. It was as though someone had flicked the light switch from dim to off. Before there had been star and moon light. Now there was absolutely nothing. The stars and moon just...vanished.  
  
"What's happening?" Joe wondered, looking around in bewilderment.  
  
Just as unexpectedly as the now extinguished light, the alarming voice of Sheranamon boomed: "What exactly do you think you are doing, Viromon?"  
  
"N-n-nothing, Sheranamon," Viromon whimpered, suddenly very, very meek.  
  
"What is going on?" TK whispered to Matt.  
  
Matt resisted the urge to laugh and whispered back: "looks like somebody's in trouble."  
  
"You didn't do your job, you worthless excuse for a virus Digimon," Sheranamon's voice bellowed.  
  
"B-b-b-but I was g-g-going t-t-to," Viromon feebly argued.  
  
"And you DELIBERATELY disobeyed my orders!" the voice continued. "I SPECIFICALLY told you to kill Courage and Courage ONLY!"  
  
"I wasn't doing anything! Really!" Viromon pleaded, edging nervously in front of Izzy.  
  
The darkness quickly floated inwards toward Viromon, allowing moonlight and starlight to shine once again.   
  
Viromon screamed in agony and shrieked: "No, I wasn't doing anything!!!"   
  
Sheranamon's voice screamed back: "You disobeyed me and you are dying! I warned you not to cross me!"  
  
"Nooo, if you delete me my work will be destroyed!" Viromon screamed as he began dissolving.  
  
The six conscious Digidestined watched wide-eyed in amazement as Viromon screamed: "NOOOOOOOO" then swiftly exploded into Digidust, which soon disappeared.  
  
"I think Sheranamon has a bit of a temper problem," Mimi muttered.  
  
"Forget Sheranamon, Izzy's waking up!" Matt replied.  
  
Mimi glanced over at Izzy as he sat up and shook his head.  
  
"Are you all right?" Joe asked. "Why did you do that? You could have been killed!"  
  
"I'm fine. What did I miss? Where's Viromon?" Izzy answered.  
  
"Let's just say that Sheranamon should be taking anger management classes," Matt explained.  
  
Izzy looked confused and quarried: "What is that supposed to mean?"  
  
"We'll explain later," Mimi established. "Why did you go after Viromon like that?"  
  
Izzy thought for a moment, then recalled: "I remember listening to Viromon's chant very intently. When Sora alerted us about Tai's deletion, it all snapped into place. If Viromon was allowed to finish his chant, Tai would have been fully deleted."  
  
Sora's face suddenly went very white and she gasped: "oh, no! I forgot about Tai!"  
  
Just as she was turning to rush back to where Tai had been laying, a familiar voice said: "what are you talking about, Sora? What do you mean you forgot about me?"  
  
"Tai! You're all right!" everyone else exclaimed.  
  
"Why wouldn't I be?" Tai wondered.  
  
"You mean you don't remember any of it?" Mimi questioned, unbelieving.  
  
"Any of what?" Tai responded.  
  
"Viromon and you being sick and-" TK started.  
  
"Me being sick? Viromon? What are you talking about?" Tai broke in.  
  
"It's a long story," Joe replied.  
  
"Well are you going to tell me what this is all about or not?" Tai demanded.   
  
The other Digidestined settled down to inform Tai about what had happened...  
  
  
~*~  
  
Sheranamon threw her crystal ball through the realm between dreams angrily.  
  
That's right; celebrate your "victory," she furiously thought. I see now where I went wrong. If you want something done right, you have to do it yourself...  
  
  
THE END  
  
  
(A/N: Well, there it is, the complete works of "Sickness." Hope you all enjoyed it. I will write one final book with Sheranamon in it (yup, you guessed it, one last sequel) and it'll be called: "Hope and Light Burning Bright.")   
  
  
  



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